


Shimmering Blush

by hergan416



Category: One Piece
Genre: Character Study, Fluff, Gen, M/M, just meeting each other, not really dating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:15:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22721566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hergan416/pseuds/hergan416
Summary: Tony Tony Chopper has wanted to get off of Birdie Kingdom and back to Sabaody for years, but has patiently been training so that he's ready to reunite with the Straw Hat crew. A freak storm passes and washes a shipwrecked marine on shore just as he's leaving. A good doctor doesn't leave their patients, especially not when the weather is so bad there's nowhere else to go.Or, how Coby and Chopper become (more than?) friends.
Relationships: Coby & Tony Tony Chopper
Kudos: 19





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Shimmering Blush is a crayon color in the hue family of red (according to crayola.com). The color pallet patch closely matches the color of the inside of Chopper's new hat, while Coby's hair more closely matches either Carnation Pink or Cotton Candy.
> 
> Written for the "pink" challenge on the MF discord server. I've been staring at it too long and it is due today. Please excuse any errors.
> 
> Second chapter to come soon.
> 
> Please enjoy.

Tony Tony Chopper woke up bright and early, excited to go back to see his friends. The last two years in Birdie Kingdom without seeing any of the other Straw Hats had been long, even with the new friends he’d made here. He knew he was stronger, and would do his best to support everyone now that he would finally get to see them again.

The days of honing his fighting skills had resulted in more consistent, varied, and useful zoan forms. The nights of studying the varied herbs and medicines on the island had not only improved his skills as a doctor, but also had allowed him to reformulate his rumble balls in order to achieve better control over his destructive Monster Point from. Chopper  _ finally  _ felt ready to rejoin Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Nami, Sanji, Robin, Franky and Brook.

He crawled from bed, making a small breakfast for himself, eying his already-packed bags as he did so. He smiled at them, knowing he’d make the trek up to the birds’ nest today and leave as soon as he got there. Excitement bubbled in his chest as he rustled around the pantry for bread and picked up a knife to begin to butter the piece he’d decided to eat.

A sudden cracking noise outside caused Chopper to drop the knife on top of the bread he was supposed to be buttering. A glance out the window showed that, far from the perfect, sunny day he’d been imagining, the sky had gone dark with thunder clouds. A flash of light heralded the next booming clap of thunder, then the rain began, harsh and unrelenting.

Chopper frowned, shivering at the thought of flying to Sabaody in this weather. Too bad Nami hadn’t been here to predict things, he could have left yesterday and avoided any potential delays.

He wished that Sanji was here to make his bread into toast. Or Franky and Usopp were here to reinvent the toast machine they’d designed one day when Sanji was refusing to cook for anyone but Nami and Robin. Either way, a hot breakfast sounded really nice right about now. Chopper picked the knife back up and continued to spread butter on the cold bread.

A sudden knock at the door interrupted him again. Curious, Chopper set the knife back down and hopped off the step stool he’d been using to reach the counter. He walked towards the door and opened it, revealing two villagers holding the injured body of a pink-haired man, very obviously not from the island, between them. Chopper’s eyes grew wide, and he beckoned them inside.

He gestured to the already-cleaned table that he had been using to study medical books, and the two men placed the tall, lanky foreigner on it, laying on his back.

“We found him on the beach,” one of the men told Chopper. “Shipwreck.”

Chopper nodded, gasping as he looked at the man’s unconscious face and realized he recognized it. It was Luffy’s friend who was in the marines… the one that had visited with Luffy’s grandpa just before they had left Water Seven in the Thousand Sunny. His broken glasses were still perched on his forehead, a shard of them partially embedded in the existing scar that Chopper remembered seeing way back then.  _ What was his name? _

“How did you get all the way out here?” Chopper wondered aloud, unpacking his herbs and beginning to prepare to operate on the man.

* * *

Coby awoke to a pain in his head. And chest. And back. Perhaps it was more than just “a” pain. He sat up slowly, groaning at the effort. He was going to attempt to swing his legs over the side of the table, when a strange series of sounds interrupted him.

One was easily understandable, it was somebody’s thoughts.  _ No, no no, he’ll open his stitches. The creams are good but not  _ that  _ good! _

Coby couldn’t exactly place the other noise: it was punctuated like walking, but not the right sound for a footfall--too high pitched, almost sticky sounding, but simultaneously too clean. A small… something ( _ was that a racoon dog? _ ) huffed its way into Coby’s vision, feet making the strange noise as it walked. 

“Don’t strain yourself!” the animal yelled at Coby, who looked, understandably, a bit taken aback.

“You… talk?” Coby found himself saying, feeling kind of stupid for stating the obvious. The creature had very clearly saved him and treated his wounds.

_ Of course I talk,  _ came the mental chatter, but what Coby  _ heard  _ was, “Yes. My name is Chopper and I am a doctor.” The reaction of someone who was too used to this conversation but still offended by it.

“Sorry, that was obvious. I was just surprised,” Coby apologized immediately, playing nervously with the hair on the back of his head and smiling. “Thank you for treating me.”

Chopper nodded, his mental chatter becoming soft and happy at the apology. He hopped up on the table next to Coby in a fluid motion. “I’m going to examine your wounds and how they are healing,” he explained as he began to undress Coby’s bandages.

Coby nodded, watching as Chopper carefully tended to him, touched by how tender he was being, even in his thoughts. He felt like he was being intrusive, and so he toned his haki down as much as he could, breathing in and out and focusing on his training. He focused on the external, examining Chopper’s face to give his haki something else to focus on. 

He felt like he’d seen this creature somewhere before… and then it hit him. This was the new crew member the Straw Hats had picked up just before he’d visited them with Garp! He didn’t have a very high bounty, just 50 berries, and had hidden while Coby had chatted with Luffy and Helmeppo on the rocks. The wanted posters all called him the Straw Hats’ pet. The marines had never been more incorrect--Chopper was obviously an intelligent being all on his own, and a very skilled member of the crew. He smiled, happy that Luffy had a friend like this with him.

“Excuse me,” Coby interrupted, deciding to make conversation. “But, why are you, a pirate, helping to treat me, a marine?” he asked. He knew that Chopper had to  _ know _ , because his tattered white “Justice” jacket was folded neatly on a chair nearby.

Chopper’s eyes widened for a moment, and Coby couldn’t totally dampen the sense of mental panic.  _ Will I be arrested? Will I be able to return to Luffy?  _ “Because you needed help,” he answered earnestly, and Coby could  _ feel  _ Chopper’s sincerity as he ended the sentence with, “and I am a doctor.”

Coby smiled and nodded. “I don’t know how much Luffy talked about me,” he tried to segue, “but he rescued me when I was younger and allowed me to join the marines. I’m not going to harm you, I’m just curious.”

Fur that Coby hadn’t initially noticed standing up flattened out as Chopper calmed down. “I really appreciate it. That shipwreck could have killed me.”  _ He wasn’t going to talk about his mission, or that it was pirates that caused the shipwreck. _

Chopper nodded, agreeing. “You’ve been out for several days, even using the advanced herbs that grow on this island. So take it easy--no getting out of bed yet!”

Coby nodded. “I won’t, no point in risking getting more hurt and causing more trouble for my doctor.” Coby smiled sincerely and looked Chopper in the eyes, “Thank you.”

Chopper had just finished dressing the last wound on Coby’s forehead. He pulled back and smiled, blushing, “That doesn’t make me happy at all, you idiot!” Chopper wiggled around happily, and Coby couldn’t help blushing back. He was so cute like that! So happy at the smallest of praises.

“You’re a good doctor, I mean it! Thank you!” And that seemed to only make it worse. Chopper stubbornly refused to outwardly acknowledge his obvious pleasure at the praise, which Coby found incredibly endearing. He blushed too.

“So where are we?” he segued again, hoping to give Chopper space to calm down.

It worked. “We’re at a place called Birdie Kingdom!” Chopper began to explain, going through all the lore and history of the island that he’d learned since he got there. Even though Coby  _ did  _ already know that they were in the South Blue, it seemed telling that Chopper didn’t mention it, since he seemed to have mentioned every other fact one could know about the island. Perhaps Chopper was just bad at navigation.

“And where are the rest of your crew?” Coby added, sure they wouldn’t be too far away.

Chopper’s eyes glassed over a little bit. “We got separated at Sabaody,” he said, eyes downturned. “Bartholomew Kuma fought us and pushed us away from each other. I landed here, and I know Luffy is ok because of the newspaper… but I hope everyone else is alright.”

Coby nodded. “I’m sure they are fine. They seemed like strong people when I met them last.” He placed a hand on Chopper’s arm comfortingly, and Chopper smiled at him.

“I’m glad you think so. We’re supposed to meet back at Sabaody soon. I was actually going to leave the day that you washed up on the island.”

Coby nodded. “I am sorry for delaying you,” he apologized sincerely. “I don’t mean to trouble anyone.”

Chopper wiggled a bit. “It’s no trouble, really. It’s good to test my new medicine on somebody before I go back to my crew.”

Coby smiled at Chopper. Adorable. “Do you mind if we go back together once I’ve got your ok?”

Chopper smiled at him. “Of course! I’m sure Luffy will be happy to see you again! Now get some rest, I’ll get some pillows to keep you comfortable now that you are awake!”

* * *

A second storm blew in two days after Coby woke up. Nearly a week later, it still had yet to let up. He was about to be cleared for travel, but the pair couldn’t leave if the weather wouldn’t cooperate. ( _ Was there a pirate in charge of this weather pattern? Was he being kept here to interfere with his mission? He’d already given up on that for now! _ ) Coby had already been moving about for a few days now, and with the increased wakefulness, he could tell that Chopper was getting stir crazy stuck inside the small house with no clear timing for when he’d get to leave for Sabaody.

Coby had seen the symptoms in many men on a long voyage: the want for their family and friends back on dry land would slowly corrode their capability to function. Even if it was reversed, the land keeping the man from the sea, Coby knew that eventually it would be dangerous. 

The make-shift calendar that had been carved in the wall to mark down the dates to Chopper’s eventual departure was a bit reminiscent of those made by men in prison for minor crimes--those who could expect an eventual release. The marks past the circled day bit into Coby; if only he hadn’t washed ashore and needed medical attention, hadn’t asked to leave at the same time and let some other doctor nurse him back to health now that the major work was done... Instead, they were stuck together in this small house, taking turns sleeping on the cot and sitting in the chair, pacing, biding their time, waiting.

On the second day, Coby had gone to his tattered coat and searched the pockets for  _ anything  _ he could find to pass the time. Unfortunately, nothing in his pockets was untouched. The deck of cards in his pocket, the most obvious answer, was waterlogged and missing cards. His transponder snail had disappeared, and the soaked pen and pad of wet paper were unusable (and his notes about the mission smudged, but that was neither here nor there). The only working item left was a small knife that had managed not to wash out of his boot, despite being very poorly jammed in place. 

The villagers had a library, but blank paper was scarce, and Chopper was understandably hesitant to use the paper to pass the time when the paper was meant as a resource to pass down medical knowledge. Chopper had also read through all of the books already, multiple times, and Coby could see his frustration as he poured over the texts some more, simply hoping to pass the time doing something different.

Coby ended up taking some of Chopper’s dry firewood and carving figurines with the knife. They weren’t great by any means, being the first time he’s tried it, but it passed the time. When Chopper eventually looks up from his book, Coby tells Chopper stories about the creatures he carves. Chopper listens intently, absorbing all the information eagerly. It’s certainly better than rereading the same texts for the tenth time.

“Can you make a reindeer?” Chopper asks Coby one day. And so now Coby is making a reindeer for Chopper. Coby’s knowledge of reindeer is lacking (says Chopper), so Chopper fills in the blanks as Coby talks about them.

Coby also makes a pair of simple dice. Not very evenly weighted at first, (he makes a few new pairs later to try and rectify this) but he knows enough games where they don’t have to bet on the outcome, since gambling is technically outlawed in the marines. Noone else seems to follow the rule, but Coby, afraid of it being used as an excuse if his past were to ever come to light, does. Besides, there needs to be  _ something  _ to play when the drill sergeant is watching.

Even when they do finally end up with a mostly even pair of dice and begin to gamble, Coby lets Chopper win most of the time. He doesn’t even need his haki to tell when Chopper is lying, the man is too honest, but Coby is likewise too honest to take advantage of it. Besides, it’s sweet how Chopper compliments Usopp for teaching him every time that he wins.

“I am sorry for keeping you from your crew for so long,” Coby apologizes towards the end of a particularly long and dark day. “If I hadn’t been here, you could have left already, between the storms.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Chopper replies, a genuine smile on his face as he tosses the dice yet again, trying to pass time from the boredom. “It’s not your fault, and I wouldn’t have been able to make a friend like you otherwise.”

Coby blushed as he realized that yes, over the past few days, they had become good friends indeed.

“What are some of your favorite things?” Coby asked curiously, realizing that before now the conversations hadn’t really turned personal.

“Cotton candy!” Chopper exclaimed, happily. “When we get back to Sabaody, I hope Nami lets me go to the amusement park and eat cotton candy!”

Coby chuckled. “Why don’t I take you?” he asked. “Once we get there?” Not really a compensation anymore, just because it would be fun to let Chopper do something he really wanted to do before they had to part. “Since we probably won’t see much of each other again.”

Chopper nodded. “I’d like that.”

“Then it’s a date,” Coby replied, smiling broadly at Chopper and tossing the dice for his turn.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Will come shortly” I say as it takes the Cornoapocalypse to get me to return to writing like I should. And then I return to work and still don’t have this finished. Oh well, it exists now? I cleaned up a few minor errors (spelling, tense, missing words) in the first chapter around the same time I began editing this again, so if it looks slightly different than you remember, that’s why.

The day _finally_ came for the pair to return to Sabaody. When the storm broke, a bird came down to the village, checking in because she hadn’t seen Chopper yet and had been expecting him up at the nest. Upon hearing the story, she immediately allowed both Chopper and Coby to board her back, beginning the trek to Sabaody by flight.

When they finally arrived, a few days of treacherous flying later, both were tuckered out from the journey. It had been tough to maintain their position on the back of the bird, with no harness or really anything to hold onto except each other. They had to take turns sleeping, one staying awake and holding the other to keep them from tumbling off the back of the giant animal. And, to make matters worse, they had flown through yet another storm on the way, and were soaked by the time they reached Sabaody.

“Let’s get a hotel with a bath and some dry sheets to sleep on,” Coby suggested, marching along the road to the best hotel he knew of.

“Nami said they would arrest me if I went that way, is it really ok?” Chopper asked, eyes shining, following Coby trustingly.

Coby stopped in his tracks. He hadn’t been thinking about Chopper being a pirate. “I’ll just tell them you are with me, it will be fine.”

Chopper nodded as Coby started up again, going towards the mainland of Sabaody with Coby. Chopper glanced around nervously at the lobby full of marines as Coby purchased their hotel room, but said nothing. The clerk didn’t bat an eye either, so keys in hand, Coby led Chopper upstairs.

“Do you want the bath first?” Coby offered. “I need to make a quick call to let my supervisor know I am alright.”

Chopper made a face and nodded, because Nami would like him better clean at the very least, and walked into the hotel’s bathroom and closed the door. Coby sighed and picked up the snail in between the pair of beds, dialing the number to his CO.

“Coby reporting sir. I became separated from the mission and shipwrecked on a mostly abandoned island. A kind doctor was able to save my life and bring me back to civilization, but I am at Sabaody now, sir. I will return to the naval base here as soon as I am done paying my debt to him.”

Coby’s heart beat quickly at the half truths, and at the gruff reply that he got in return, but he made no mention of it as he saluted the phone and hung up. He had collected a clean pair of Marine Whites with his station on them from the laundry downstairs, and laid them out carefully on the bed for when he got clean. 

He thought for a moment about clean clothes for Chopper before knocking on the door to the bathroom. “Do you mind if I grab your clothes to wash them?” he yelled through the closed door.

“Go for it!” Coby heard Chopper yell back at him, so he quickly opened the door, collected the clothes from the floor, and left.

* * *

Chopper hummed to himself in the shower, making the endeavor quick. He trusted the water to not contain salt (if Usopp and Franky could build a machine to remove the salt from the water, surely the marine hotel on _land_ would be able to support the same function), but he didn’t like the idea of prolonging the process any more than he needed to.

By the time he had finished, he smelled faintly of cherry blossom shampoo, and was happily lounging on his assigned bed, wrapped in a towel while he waited for his clothes to dry.

Coby was currently showering, leaving Chopper a minute to think on his own. He smiled happily at the idea of exploring Sabaody some more with Coby, protected from both the law and Nami’s rules, and then at the prospect of reuniting with his friends later. Coby had said that the outing was a date, and Chopper wondered at the phrase. Coby spoke formally enough that the phrase could mean nothing. Or maybe Coby actually meant it as a date!

Chopper rolled around on the bed happily at the prospect. Over the last several days stuck in the cabin with Coby, Chopper had begun to feel close to the other man. He had a great deal of respect for his kindness and ingenuity. He always gave Chopper an appropriate amount of space, but seemed to know when Chopper wanted attention. The carved reindeer still rested in his box with all his new herbs, a memento of the time to take with him. Coby even had the forethought to wash Chopper’s clothing so he wouldn’t just undo his shower by getting dirty again, something Chopper would never have thought of himself. Coby probably earned him extra points with Nami.

Who _wouldn’t_ want to date the man?

...But, Chopper was a reindeer. He could make friends with humans, he’d learned that much. But he doubted he was supposed to fall in love with them. This was probably merely an outing finalized with outdated language. He resigned himself to the fact, and then turned his focus towards having a fun day with his new friend.

* * *

When Coby exited the shower, he could feel that something was wrong with Chopper, but there were no external signs of it. There was some sort of unmentioned mental turmoil that Chopper was doing a great job of hiding. He faced a dilemma. It seemed that he should address it, but without his intrusive mind-reading power, he wouldn’t have even known the problem existed. So he let it go for now, hoping that by the time they had to part at the end of their date, Chopper would open up about it. He certainly didn’t want to end their time together on a sour note, not with the way his feelings towards Chopper had progressed over the last week.

He finished dressing, checked Chopper’s clothes (still wet), and decided to at least find a pair of pants for Chopper to wear in the meantime. The navy’s blue pants wouldn’t look too weird on Chopper, and he could continue to wear his backpack without a shirt. Coby wanted to get as much time on the archipelago with Chopper as he could before they had to go their separate ways, and told Chopper as much. Chopper seemed inclined to agree, and they left the hotel shortly, heading in the direction of the amusement park.

Even without using his ability to read minds, Chopper’s excitement over the rides, food, sights, and smells at Sabaody Park was so strong that Coby couldn’t help but pick up on it. The excitement was contagious, and he smiled down at his new friend. “What do you want to do first?” he asked, curious.

“Cotton candy! The roller coaster! The Ferris wheel!” Chopper seemed too excited to prioritize his goals, and Coby smiled broadly at the antics. A food stand was on their left, so Coby decided to steer Chopper towards it. They’d see the park in the order it appeared.

“Anything besides cotton candy from the stand while we’re here?” he asked Chopper, who was bouncing up and down excitedly next to him in line. 

“I can get more?” Chopper’s eyes were wide as saucers, and Coby could feel his heart melting.

“Of course,” Coby replied. He had enough money on hand to cover basically anything they could accomplish in the few hours they would have in the park.

“Lemonade! And…” Chopper pointing to some sort of sweet cracker that was being sold at the stand. 

“Anything else?”

Chopper pointed to something else, and they continued on like this until they got to the front of the line. Two drinks and a variety of snacks later found themselves sitting on a bench divvying up the haul. There was enough for each of them to try one of everything, which they did happily, making delighted faces at each new confection. Chopper saved his cotton candy for last, which Coby thought cute, considering that it was quite obviously his favorite.

“Coby,” Chopper asked through a mouthful of the fluffy candy. “Do you think that it’s better when you save the best for last?”

Coby nodded. “I have heard that before,” he replied. “That the anticipation of having your favorite thing, but waiting, will make it even better when you choose to enjoy it.” It felt like the navy’s training, actually, to be honest. “Is that how it is?”

Chopper nodded, finishing the sweet in an astoundingly quick time. “Yes. I think the cotton candy was the best I’ve ever had.”

Coby smiled broadly. “I’m glad.”

They stood and deposited the wrappers from their treats in a nearby trash can. “The roller coaster is this way,” Coby pointed, seeing the sign for the attraction.

“I think I’m too full to do a roller coaster now,” Chopper complained, and Coby nodded his acceptance.

“Then the Ferris Wheel is over here.” He unthinkingly reached for Chopper’s hand to lead him towards the ride, and was met with a jolt of nervousness bombarding his haki as his hand was gripped in return. He glanced down at Chopper, who was blushing furiously, but looking extremely happy, like when he received a compliment. Coby gave his hand a quick squeeze, smiling encouragingly at him. “It’s ok,” he encouraged.

“But I’m a reindeer,” Chopper marveled. “And I spent the last two years training to be even more of a monster.”

“Outside of that, how do _you_ feel about it?” Coby asked, not yet letting go of Chopper’s hand.

“Happy,” Chopper replied, still blushing.

“So do I,” Coby replied. He began to walk towards the line to the Ferris Wheel while he talked, leading Chopper by the hand now that he was certain it was acceptable. 

“Some might say that a marine and a pirate could never be friends, or love one another, but it happens all the time. Some might say the same of fishmen and humans, that they could never get along. Yet that isn’t as rare as people are led to believe either. What I’m saying is, your heart and personality are _you,_ whether you are a reindeer or not. And _you_ are worthy of love.”

Chopper blushed deeply, then squeezed Coby’s hand back. “So this is actually a date then, not just… an outing?”

Coby nodded. “If you would like it to be.” They arrived at the Ferris Wheel’s line and joined the queue.

Chopper, still blushing a little, wiggled a little happily. “I would.”

They waited in line and were overcome by a companionable silence, the sort of silence that occurs after something important has just been said and both parties are thinking it over. Neither let go of the other’s hand. 

The line moved quickly, and Coby paid the man at the front for the ride, and they entered the gondola. They sat on the same side of the car, tilting it off balance, but the ride operator didn’t say anything. Chopper’s excitement over seeing the whole park grew, and soon their car was filled with contagious laughter and good conversation.

Dusk was setting. Although it was still mostly light, they watched the lights of the park begin to blink on from the top of the car. It paused there, over the park, the whole Sabaody peninsula bathed in light and bubbles and happiness.

“What happens to this after I go back to my crew?” Chopper asked suddenly, as the ride began to return to the ground.

“What do you want to happen?” Coby replied. “I _am_ still a marine. I will need to go back to our base.”

Chopper thought for a moment. “We can still be friends that love each other though?” he asked. 

And Coby nodded, chuckling. “Of course.”

Chopper nodded too. “That sounds nice.”

 _That it does,_ Coby thought, a soft smile lighting up his face.

* * *

Goodbye the next morning was bittersweet. Chopper’s clothes were finally fully dry, and his anxiety about not finding his friends was growing. Coby also knew that he couldn’t host the pirate forever without raising suspicions, and he had a duty to return to the marine base he was assigned to.

Still, Coby shook Chopper’s hand with enthusiasm, holding it a bit longer than typical. “I am glad I got rescued by you,” Coby stated in parting, face flush with embarrassment. “I enjoyed getting to know you, and our time together.”

“Me too,” Chopper agreed, face somehow near matching in shade. “Even if I was delayed, I’m glad that I was delayed with you.”

They shared a silent look, the unstated _I love you and will miss you_ palpable in the air, before both turned and went their separate directions.

“Later!” Coby called over his shoulder.

“Next time!” Chopper called back.

And they were on to their next adventures.


End file.
